


On The Tip of His Tongue

by hellodarling



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-11
Updated: 2013-05-11
Packaged: 2017-12-11 12:01:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/798529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellodarling/pseuds/hellodarling
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn had been alone for a long time when a young couple moved into the flat across the corridor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On The Tip of His Tongue

**Author's Note:**

> A big thank you to Dani (malikstone on Tumblr) for being my Ziam beta.
> 
> I hope you all like it, kudos and comments are always welcome ^^
> 
> PS: I posted this months ago in my Tumblr (boboyaboo.tumblr.com) but changed and added bits and pieces in this one.

**On The Tip of His Tongue**

 

A new tenant just moved into the flat across the corridor.

It was dark out when Zayn made his way down the stairs of the apartment building, the new tenants, a man and a woman, were making their way up, opting to take the long winding staircase instead of the elevator for some reason.

Both of their hands were filled with grocery bags, the woman had her eyebrows furrowed and annoyance lining every bit of her otherwise pretty face, visibly upset. The man was brown haired and nice looking, the kind that you could stare at all day and wouldn't be bored.

“Why did you buy this brand? I told you I liked the organic ones, couldn't you just listen and actually do what I told you to do just once? Is that so hard to remember? Buy organic ones!” She huffed and puffed her way up the stairs in heels that were way too high for groceries shopping, leaving the man trailing behind her looking guilty, but mostly just tired.

“I know, I’m sorry, I was rushing and failed to check.” The man can only apologize, understanding that no good can come out of trying to defend himself. His voice was soothing and calming, Zayn liked the sound of it.

It was the fact that the man suddenly looked up and straight into his eyes that stopped Zayn dead in his tracks. A soft polite smile appeared on the tired face, “Good evening.”

“Good evening!” Zayn nodded back after a few confused seconds of silence with a matching courteous smile, maybe with a bit more surprise in his tone than necessarily friendly. Wondering how the man could even notice his presence under the scrutiny of the woman.

She, on the other hand, doesn't even acknowledge Zayn, brushing pass him with an exaggerated scoff. Continuing on her ranting as though her boyfriend (maybe husband?) just ran over her cat.

Zayn watched as the couple reached the last landing and disappeared behind the emergency exit door, the brown haired man looking back at him and throwing an apologetic smile his way that kept Zayn baffled until a distant sound of a door being slammed jolted him awake.

 

—-

 

The next night, someone knocked on Zayn’s door. Softly and tentatively at first which got louder and more determined as the seconds passed by, “Excuse me? Anybody home?”

Zayn sat quietly on the sofa, making no effort to move. Eyes watching the shadows of the city outside dancing on his windowsill.

It wasn't long after that the rapping on his door stopped.

Zayn heard the soft thud of the door across the corridor closing. He waited a few minutes before he finally shifted and journeyed the short distance to press on his new neighbor’s doorbell. A short second later the wooden door was wrenched opened by the brown haired man. The same polite, albeit shy and slightly surprised, smile still on his face.

“Hi…um…were you the one who knocked on my door?” Zayn had asked, voice low and completely unsure, not of the situation as much as it was of the man..

The man’s eyes wandered to Zayn’s door for a split second before focusing on him, “Yes, yes, that was me. Your doorbell was broken so I knocked, sorry if I interrupted you.”

“You didn't but…was there something wrong?”

“No! Not at all! Right, come on in, if you don’t mind.” The man motioned for Zayn to step inside and invited him to sit on a fluffy brown sofa.

Zayn followed him inside, his head swimming with curiosity and just trying to wrap himself in the situation coolly, “I’m Zayn by the way.” He offered.

The man looked flustered for a moment before sputtering out, “Oh God! How rude was I? I’m Liam.”

  
“So Liam, is there anything I could help you with?” Zayn chuckled as he took Liam’s extended hand to shake.

“Well, it’s nothing really, I was just thinking, now that we’re neighbors…I made some dessert for you. I mean…just to say hi…and stuff…” Liam was stuttering a bit, it was quite endearing if Zayn thought about it, something which he doesn't think he had the benefit to.

“Will it be too much of a hassle?” Zayn asked.

“My fiancé is out for the day, it’s just me, I had time on my hands.”

Zayn smiled and accepted the offer for dessert.

While Liam disappeared into what Zayn assumed as the kitchen, he looked around the small living room. The décor was simple and muted, furniture more ordinary than fancy, but everything together made it cozy and warm…just like Liam, Zayn thought.

Liam emerged with a small plate in his hand, on it was the most beautiful and delicious looking chocolate cake Zayn had ever seen, proudly telling Zayn that he made it himself.

“You’re a baker?”

Liam blushed a bit, “Pastry chef actually, I don’t know why, I’ve always loved making desserts. I’m currently working in a food and beverage company as New Product Developer.”

“This is really good!” Zayn exclaimed appreciatively as he took the first bite.

“Is it?” The blush came back on Liam’s grinning face, looking rightfully pleased with himself, “Thank you!”

Zayn tried to eat as slowly as he could, savoring each bite he took of the amazingly tasty and succulent cake. But soon enough he had to swallow his last bite.

The conversation flowed smoothly between them, talking about Liam’s job and life in general. Zayn found out that Liam’s parents died in a car crash a few years back, he didn’t keep contact with his estranged sisters after the horrible accident. Then the subject shifted to Liam’s fiancé, a girl he had been together with since high school, and they were planning to tie the knot by the end of the year. His meager salary prevented them from getting a bigger place but Liam was quite content with his life. The flat had been purchased as preparation for the marriage, it was a bit small to start a family in but it would do for now.

It was later than both of them had anticipated before they realized the time.

  
Liam had just closed the door behind Zayn when the elevator dinged open and said fiancé stepped out of it in a huff. Her high heels scratched and stomped on the carpet-less floor, her expression was all kinds of irritated. Zayn could only smile and step out of her way.

She didn’t give him so much of a glance.

 

———-

 

The walls of the building were not made to keep noises down.

 

“SHE WAS JUST A HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE LIAM! BUT SHE’S LIVING IN A PROPER TWO STORY HOUSE AND DRIVES A PORSCHE! THEIR WEDDING RECEPTION WAS IN BLOODY HILTONS! DO YOU KNOW HOW IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE HER PARADING HER DIAMOND RING TO MY FACE? I HAVE A COLLEGE DEGREE, I’M WAY PRETTIER THAN HER, BUT ALL I HAVE IS THIS CRAPPY ONE BEDROOM SECOND HAND FLAT! I HAVE TO TAKE THE BUS TO GO ANYWHERE! AND YOU! ALL YOU CAN DO IS BAKE BAKE AND BAKE! YOU HAD A CHANCE TO MOVE AND MADE A BETTER LIVING BUT NOOOO, YOU WEREN’T HAPPY ABOUT THAT WERE YOU LIAM? YOU WON’T EVEN DO IT FOR ME! YOU ONLY WANT TO BAKE! GO FUCKING MARRY YOUR CRAPPY CAKES!”

 

———-

 

Zayn sat quietly on his sofa, pondering the last few hours that had been quite interesting for him. Liam intrigued him.

Liam’s cake was undoubtedly delicious and all things wonderful. It was moist and soft with the perfect amount of sugary sweetness and rich milky flavor. If there were anything wrong with it, Zayn thought, was the fact that maybe Liam had put too much chocolate powder into it…because there was a bitterness in it…just a tad.

 

———-

 

The next time Zayn saw Liam was three days later. The brown haired man was slumped drunk against his door.

Zayn helped him into his flat, using the keys Liam had been gripping in his hand, too drunk to find the keyhole.

From the drunken slurs and sobs that poured out of Liam’s mouth, Zayn could just make out that the couple had just fought, and this time it seems that it went really badly.

Zayn couldn’t understand. He couldn’t understand her need to envy the luck of other people and he certainly couldn’t understand why she feels that she has to blame her patient sweet fiancé for everything that she deemed wrong in her life.

And Liam, Zayn couldn’t understand why the man had to abuse his body like that for such a woman.

But Zayn knew it wasn’t his place to pry, he failed to understand the world most of the time, and he had stopped asking questions a long long time ago.

Stepping into the kitchen to dish out some tea for the drunken man, Zayn couldn’t help but to be fascinated by what he found. It’s easy to see where most of Liam’s money had gone, while the rest of the flat were simple and ordinary, his kitchen was impeccable. Two bakery size ovens, a multi-purpose blender, eggbeater, scales, everything looked high end and spotless. The cupboards and counters were filled with all kinds of flours, sugars, food coloring, powders, the refrigerator stacked with eggs, and milk, and all kinds of cheese. If he close his eyes and just breathed in the sweet milky scent that lingers in the air, Zayn could easily had the misconception that he was standing in the middle of a bakery and not just some tiny flat owned by a dysfunctional couple.

Zayn likes it.

 

————

 

“She hasn’t always been this way.” Liam had explained once he sobered up a little, lying on the sofa with his head on Zayn’s lap, the tanned fingers massaging Liam’s temple, soothing the headache away.

“I met her in high school and than we went to the same college. We came from poor backgrounds, we had to study extra hard and take more part time jobs than the other students. We rarely have any extra money, so we usually just stroll around the campus hand in hand, sometimes we spent a quid or two to take the bus to the city park and treat ourselves with a scone. It was enough for us because we were together…we were happy.”

There was a stilted pause as Liam tried to gather his words once more, Zayn’s fingers relentless in chasing away Liam’s pains. Zayn’s skin was cold on Liam’s temple, but his strokes were hot enough to burn down the ache.

“But a couple of years after graduation…she started to change, she wanted to wear branded clothes, she wanted to use high class products, anything I couldn’t afford to buy for her she would buy herself, using almost all of her own savings. And then she started to bitch about how I couldn’t provide for her, my salary is not enough for us, and that I choose my cakes over her!”

“You make delicious desserts!” Zayn couldn’t resist. It was the bitterness in the way Liam spit out the word ‘cake’.

Liam shot him an appreciative look and said "thank you" before continuing.

“She used to like my baking, but over time, she got sick of it. She hasn’t said one word about my creations in years.” The man reached into his pocket and fished out a small worn out ring, “She gave this back to me today…she said that she needs to rethink about whether or not she should marry me.”

They fell into a long silence, Zayn’s fingers had stopped threading circles on Liam’s temple, but they still lingered on. It must’ve been a good hour of silence before Liam suddenly sat up, back to the couch and looking intently into Zayn’s eyes, he looked troubled, torn, almost desperate.

“Zayn…do you reckon I should change my job? Maybe go into sales or marketing or something…better money.”

After a good minute of contemplation, Zayn rubbed his hands together, patting Liam’s sagged shoulders, “I saw some leftover cake in your refrigerator just now.”

Liam was obviously confused but nodded.

“May I have some? I like your cakes.”

“Of course!” There was a tiny smile at the corner of Liam’s mouth.

Zayn followed Liam into the kitchen and settled himself on the kitchen counter, waiting patiently as Liam prepared a plate for him.

He took a bite and quickly scrunched up, “It’s not chocolate?”

“It’s coffee actually. My…I mean she…likes coffee flavor.”

“Do you like it?”

The brown mop shook as Liam gave Zayn a confirmation for his suspicion.

Zayn took another bite before continuing, “I don’t either, and this coffee cake you made is overwhelmingly bitter.”

Liam hung his head low, nibbling relentlessly on his nails feeling as though nothing he does will ever be right again.

“You should make what you like instead.”

“Oh….” There was that fire again. Zayn always seem to kindle something on him, like a heat that was constantly there under Zayn’s cold eyes.

Putting down the spoon, Zayn put his hands on Liam’s shoulders, firm and commanding, tipping his head down urging Liam to look at him, “I know what you were feeling when you made this cake Liam. You felt lost, you felt pressured and you couldn’t breathe…kind of like dough in the process of fermentation, you beat it and you knead it into a ball, leaving it no room to breathe.”

Liam chuckled ironically, “Wow, that’s an impressive comparison…”

Zayn puts a thumb on Liam’s lips, silencing him, inching closer to the other man, palm cupping Liam’s tensed jaw, “And then…you put the fermented dough into the oven, you set the perfect temperature, letting it bake until it turned golden brown. It was no longer just a ball of dough, it’s now a fluffy warm bread ready to be served. Do you want to stay being an airless dough Liam? Or do you want to be the tasty bread that invites people for a taste?”

“I want to be the bread…”

“Then make the bread.”

 

———

 

When Zayn left the flat a few beats later, Liam was still sitting over the kitchen counter with the tell tale cold and underlying heat of the lips Zayn pressed on his cheek.

 

———-

 

Two days later, Zayn met Liam on the stairs.

Liam blushed, looking utterly embarrassed, “I apologize about the other day.”

Zayn quickly waved his hands, halting Liam’s barrage of apology, “No, no, it’s quite alright. How’s things with your fiancé?”

“We’ve decided to take a little break from each other, clear our heads. She moved back to her old flat.”

“That’s a good idea.” Zayn beamed at Liam encouragingly.

“Uhm…Zayn…I made Lemon mousse today, do you maybe…want to come over and try?”

Zayn was only too delighted to accept.

 

———-

 

In a cloudy foggy day two months later, Liam’s fiancé came to gather all her belongings and left without bothering to wait until Liam came back from work.

Zayn stood by his door, watching the woman dragged her luggage in heels too high for such a feat.

Maybe he chuckled a bit when the woman almost tripped over before she could get into the elevator…maybe he didn’t even feel guilty about it.

A few hours later he heard the door across the corridor being slammed shut.

The man who opened the same door for him a moment later looked broken and miserable, but managed a small smile.

“I made cake, come on in.”

That day, Liam made coffee muffins.

Before Zayn could say anything, Liam already offered an explanation, “She called this morning saying that she’s coming over, that’s why I made it. I thought she would have at least waited until I came back.”

“So it’s over?” Zayn knew he sounded rude and blunt, but there was really no other way to say it.

“Yeah…”

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay.”

“Stubborn…”

“No, I’m serious…I’m…better than I thought I would be.”

Zayn took a bite of the muffin and looked at Liam thoughtfully, “When I eat your cakes, I could taste what you were feeling when you made it.”

The man let out a dry sort of laugh and shoved Zayn playfully, “That’s funny mate.”

“I’m being serious!” Zayn quipped back, looking exactly like he claimed he was, “in this particular piece, I can taste a drop of your tears.”

Liam fell silent almost immediately, all trace of forced laughter gone.

Zayn didn’t say anything else.

 

———-

 

It became a habit of them, Zayn making himself comfortable in Liam’s living room, after sunset when Liam came back from work, eating whatever Liam would whip out for the day.

Zayn loves the wonderful enticing flavors of Liam’s creations, and the man looked like he loves watching people eating them.

They talked, they laughed, and after a while Liam emerged out of his heartbreak and genuinely smiled again.

 

———-

 

One day, almost a year since Zayn accepted the sweet smelling baker into his world, Liam invited him over to taste a new cake he was testing. Telling the dark haired boy that there was a chance that it could be the new product of his company’s summer dessert line.

“How is it?” Liam had asked tentatively. It had been a long time coming that Zayn’s opinion meant the world to him.

And Zayn responded with the only honest description he could think of, “Delicious!”

Liam grinned and gave Zayn a thoughtful look, “What was I feeling?”

“Indecisive decision.”

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

“That’s true, not trying to make sense.” Zayn smirked, always with that mysterious fiery glint in his eyes.

It wasn’t until Zayn had finished every last crumb and almost literally licked the plate clean that Liam finally started to ask the questions Zayn knew he would eventually.

“Zayn, what do you do exactly?”

“Nothing really, I just stay at home.”

“Oh that’s good, kind of like freelance and stuff.”

That was Liam’s own assumptions, Zayn didn’t say anything.

“But exactly what? Author? Graphic design?” Liam tried again.

But Zayn only shook his head, saying he doesn’t want to say it just yet, afraid of jinxing it.

Liam accepted his reasoning with visible dissatisfaction on his face.

He asked about Zayn’s flat than, if he could join Zayn sometimes there, “I’m sorry but…I don’t let people came into my flat. I’m sorry Liam.”

“Oh…That’s okay…I was just…”

The atmosphere had turned a bit awkward so Zayn thanked Liam for the dessert and left.

Zayn knew how it would be weird for Liam that they had known each other for a year now but he never once stepped foot into the flat across the corridor, or even knew that much about Zayn himself. But for Zayn, no one will ever be allowed to go into his flat…no one.

 

———-

 

About a week after the awkward conversation, Zayn found himself sitting on Liam’s couch again, enjoying another delicious treat…although…”You were not happy today.”

It wasn’t a question on Zayn’s part.

“The cake told you?”

Liam folded his arms as he looked Zayn up and down, “Are you like a worm I may have accidentally battered into the mix?”

Zayn just grinned that small all-knowing grin he always have and licked the fork in his hand, “They didn’t choose your product to be launched?”

“It’s not that…”Liam shook his head, looking troubled, it was a look Zayn hadn’t seen in quite some time.

“They wanted to launch my product, but they also wanted to decrease the fresh milk component by 20% and increase the price by 30% meanwhile they’re planning to cut the net weight of the product by 5 grams, so that they could get the highest profit they could suck out of the consumers. I don’t think I could agree with that.”

Zayn nodded in agreement as Liam continued, “I like making and creating new desserts so that everyone can enjoy them, not just people who can afford it!”

Biting his fingers again, to which Zayn had pointedly told him it was a bad habit, Liam looked over at the darker skinned man nervously, “I thought a lot about it, I’ve decided to use the money I was saving for the wedding to open my own bakery or patisserie. I figured that way I could make whatever I want on my own term.”

“That’s great Liam! I support you one hundred percent!” The smile on Zayn’s face is nothing but sincere.

“Would you be willing to help me Zayn? Maybe be my partner?” It’s obvious that Liam had practiced asking the question over and over again.

But Zayn could only shook his head without having to think about it, “I’m not good at doing business and such. I’ll settle to just be your late night food tester.”

Liam nodded solemnly.

“I’m sorry.”

“Oh no, that’s okay! I was just wondering.” Liam grinned unassumingly, making Zayn feel a tiny bit guilty nevertheless, but then Liam had suddenly looked like he remembered something. He reached over to his bag that was slung across the back of the sofa and produced two tickets for a popular play that Zayn knew Liam had been dying to see.

“A colleague of mine bought these for him and his wife but something came up so he gave them to me, do you want to…maybe…go with me?”

Zayn understood what Liam was implying, he really did, but he couldn’t do it. There was still so much Liam didn’t know and wouldn’t understand. So he declined the offer, citing a previous plan he had agreed to.

For a fleeting second, Liam looked disappointed, “I’ll just go with another colleague I guess…”

 

———-

 

The next day, Zayn spotted the tickets stashed into the garbage bin.

 

———-

 

For quite a while after, Liam was unbelievably busy with the preparation of opening his own shop. He had quit his job and spent the days looking for suitable space, decorating, planning, shopping, but there was one thing he never forgot to do. Every night, no matter how late Liam arrived home, he would set down a perfect piece of treat in front of Zayn’s door and knock three times.

Zayn smiled with every bite he took.

 

———-

 

One of those days, Zayn took one bite and rushed through Liam’s door, not bothering to knock.

He found Liam on his bed, looking like a mess, staring at the man who just burst through his door, not particularly surprised.

“You’re sick…I’m taking care of you tonight.”

Liam just nodded, lying quietly while he lets Zayn fuss over him the whole night.

The next day when Liam woke up, he felt so much better, and Zayn gave him a bright smile while handing him a cup of tea, stating that Liam had been a good patient, before returning back to the darkness of his own flat.

 

———-

 

As the date of the big opening drew near, Zayn could taste a certain kind of ‘fond’ in the desserts.

But it was still simmering at the surface, not yet center deep.

 

———-

 

On the date of the opening, Liam invited Zayn to come, but the dark eyed man had once again declined.

The fondue that day tasted like ‘disappointment’.

 

———-

 

On Liam’s birthday, Zayn went over to help blow the candles on the birthday cake Liam made for himself.

There was no party, just the two of them, and Zayn tasted ‘affection’.

 

———-

 

In the kitchen, Liam taught Zayn how to knead the dough, whisk the batter, decorate the cake.

A midst the fog of flour, food coloring splattered all over their outfits, and the messy ‘I knead you’ sprawled across Zayn’s first masterpiece, he tasted ‘contentment’.

 

———-

 

Liam asked Zayn what feeling he could taste in his treats lately. Zayn smiled at him and answered “happiness”.

And the pastry chef beamed.

 

————

 

The shop started to make good profit in just a few short months, the business had bloomed rapidly, even the local food network had taken notice and came to interview Liam.

When the interviewer asked him the secret of his success Liam answered that someone very special to him understood his creations and never ceased to give him every emotional support he needed, watching that person eat his treats gave him the yearning to be better.

Zayn had teased Liam on how creepy he sounded.

 

———-

 

With every good review of his cake shop and every high ratings, Liam soon became a local food celebrity.

And along with it came his ex-fiance, running back.

Liam asked Zayn about what he should do. Zayn told him to do whatever he wanted, it was not his business and have no right to meddle in Liam’s life.

It didn’t come as a surprise when Liam finally buckled down and kissed Zayn. And for a short moment Zayn reciprocate the kiss with equal fervor. His fingers cold and tight around Liam’s neck but his lips hot and burning against Liam’s own lips.

But it was over all too soon.

“Please tell me you at least feel something…”

Zayn pried Liam’s hands away from fisting into his collars, “I’m sorry Liam.”

“I don’t believe you Zayn, how can you kiss me like that and feel nothing?”

“I’m locked permanently in this cage Liam, I have lost the ability to feel anything a long time ago.”

Before Liam could make any sense of Zayn’s answer, he was left alone with only the ghostly cold tingle of the kiss upon his lips.

 

———-

 

A few days later, as Zayn emerged out of the stairs, he saw the woman storm out of Liam’s flat. Face red with fury, clutching her over sized bag like it was a weapon she would strike the first person she sees.

She halted temporarily when she spotted the small pretty box of cake in front of Zayn’s door and stomped on it with an expression that reminded Zayn of a little child being denied of what she wants.

Zayn smiled as the woman stormed pass him and barreled down the stairs without even giving Zayn the time of day.

Emerging from the shadows Zayn could only be relieved that she didn’t.

When he looked back to the corridor he saw Liam bending over the mess she left at his door and gave Zayn an apologetic look.

Taking his hand, Liam sat Zayn down on his usual spot on Liam’s couch, staring intently into Zayn’s cold dark eyes, “Would you want to run the shop with me Zayn? I couldn’t promise that it will be an easy sailing but it would give you the freedom you might need from this cage of yours. You might even be happy…”

Zayn laughed good-naturedly, giving Liam an affectionate squeeze on the shoulder, “You silly little baker, I’ve been given my freedom a long time ago.”

Liam gave him a smile so bright it pained him, “But I still can’t run your shop with you Liam…” and the smile faltered.

“Why…?”

“…”

 

————

 

Despite being turned down yet again, Zayn tasted ‘love’. The sensation was mixed so thoroughly into the treats he couldn’t escape from it, nor he could get enough.

But there was also ‘lonely’.

 

————

 

“What is it with you and black clothes?” Liam had asked.

Zayn tasted ‘passion’ that night.

“I like them.”

Liam stared at him, appreciating the alluring tanned skin that he couldn’t push out of his head, and despite Zayn’s ringing laughter that bounced off and lingered in Liam’s space even hours after the man had left, his beautiful dark eyes had always looked empty and cold. But Liam could always feel the heat radiating out of the very being that is Zayn, it left Liam crumbling down his defenses, struggling to breathe at times when the mere presence of the man suffocates him.

Everything about Zayn looks so dark and gloomy, but yet radiant and almost translucent. He was so beautiful.

Zayn knew he had to stop, but it had been so long, it had been too long.

The ‘yearn’ and ‘want’ and ‘need’ tasted particularly strong in the days to come.

 

————

 

The brown dry leaves that clung desperately onto the branches had been blown hopelessly away by the cold wind of the approaching winter.

Zayn had always hated winter. Winter reminded him of blazing torture and pain. A freeze that ate his skin and burn down his life.

That end of fall, after years of trying to forget, the memories came rushing back and just like all those years ago, there was nothing he could do but sit there, looking out the boarded windows.

He sat on his couch in silence as the shouts and yells from outside of the building grew louder, he could faintly hear the siren of the firetruck in the distance. It almost occupied all of his attention if not for the frantic banging on his door.

“Zayn! Zayn! Open the door! There’s a fire downstairs, we have to leave NOW!”

Liam knew Zayn was home, he never left the building.

The banging had become even more frantic and desperate, trying to pry open the door without much success. Finally, Liam threw all of his body weight on the surprisingly fragile door and found himself stumbling into…darkness.

The sun had set, only glimmers of lights from the outside world gave Liam the chance to take in the sight in front of him as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.

Zayn was sitting, calmly, patiently, coldly, on a heap of something that resembled a small couch, giving Liam a small defeated smile, “I told you not to come in here.”

His words were met with silence, absolute silence, from the man standing stunned.

The walls were covered in shades of black that definitely were not from paint, scorched furniture loitered the room, melted plastics and wax and broken pieces of glass and life.

“Zayn…?” Liam’s eyebrows were furrowed, heavy questions hung in the air, confusions all over his eyes.

Zayn stood up from his place, the only being emitting light in the dark, slowly making his way closer and closer to the still figure, unable to move.

“Two years before you came, there was another fire in this building. I was locked in, I couldn’t get out. I was trapped. I was so badly burnt that no one could even recognized me, my body was marked as unidentified. I guess you could say that I…I died a nobody.”

“The person who locked me in here…he must’ve felt some kind of remorse, or he just forgot about this place. He never came to clean up, everything was still as it was from that day, no one even bothered to do anything.”

“I couldn’t understand…why or how you were able to see me. No one was supposed to be able to, the first time you said hi to me, I thought I have finally gone insane from being muted and alone for so long, I didn’t even know if that was possible for a gh - for my kind.”

The sirens blared closer now, the air surrounding them felt dense and heavy, smog seeping through the floorboards, the heat was undeniable, the fire was getting closer and closer.

But Liam stood still, his eyes filled to the brink with emotions Zayn had never seen before.

Zayn forced a weak smile, “You should go Liam, before it’s too late. It wasn’t a pleasant sensation…being literally burning. Live your life Liam, forget about me like you had never seen me before…and make your cakes, you said you wanted to make delicious treats for people remember?”

But Liam stood still, eyes fixed on the man, the being, in front of him. There were a thousand different emotions in there that kindled the heat in Zayn’s own cold dead eyes. His hands trembled, a sensation Zayn hadn’t felt in a long long time as he grew desperate when the brown haired man still stood unmoved, “Please leave Liam…please…” Zayn’s voice was lost, drowned inside the combination of the siren and a cracking foundation, “…live.”

It was an easy choice for Liam, he had been in the same position before.

“You had always been too good to be true.” Liam had finally breathed out, reaching out for Zayn.

 

————

 

Zayn is not afraid of fires and winter anymore. He’s not afraid of the increasing long nights and the moving shadow of the bustling world outside his window, not afraid of the last brown leave blown away and buried under the thin layer of first snow, not afraid of being lonely.

And the beaming being in front of him snuggles into his arms, hands holding a perfect plate of cake.

“New flavor!” Liam claims proudly, “I’m calling it Lacing Temptation, doesn’t that sound so artistic?”

Laying a fond kiss on Liam’s temple, Zayn takes a bite, “Thank you love.”

“So! What taste?”

Zayn hums and kisses the cheeky smirk off Liam’s lips, and he finally feels again.

 

———-

 

“I have so many flavors I wanted to try, so many cakes I wanted to bake, and I didn’t know how it happened or even when it started, the only thing that mattered to me was seeing the satisfaction in your smile when you tried them. You were the only real thing in my life, a life that I realized had ended a long time ago. I could only see me in your eyes and nothing and no one else seems important anymore. I’d suffer through fire all over again for you Zayn, if that means I could be with you.”

 

————

 

They tasted ‘forever’.

 

———~fin~———


End file.
